The World’s First Human Cannonball and Other Incredible Jobs

About this book

Throughout history, and even today, people (and machines) have done some weird jobs. 

Take for instance court jesters, fullers (who washed wool togas in wee in Roman times), royal food tasters, crocodile wrestlers, and even toad eaters (don’t worry: no toads were actually consumed). 

In this hilarious comic-style book, Mike Barfield and Franziska Höllbacher take readers through a huge variety of zany, unusual, and often wacky jobs, organised by theme: jobs that include travel (astronaut, Incan messenger, and chariot racer), desirable jobs (plutocrat and king both seem nice) and risky jobs, such as being a pirate.  

There are also sports jobs, like being a martial artist, or mysterious jobs, like being a professional oracle. Finally, there are the dirty jobs that few of us would like to do, like the work of Canadian marine biologist Justine Hudson, who collects snot sprayed from the blowholes of Beluga whales. Yuck!

Introducing children to the world of work, albeit in a light-hearted way, The World’s First Human Cannonball is also a great insight into what work looked like in the past and what different cultures have found important at different times. The cartoon format is immensely readable, colourful and funny, and Barfield has a great talent for making history come alive. 

There’s also a quiz at the end of the book so that young readers can think about what they might like to do when they grow up, and a fun career path flowchart to help children decide which zany job might be good for them. 

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